


This Is Gospel

by JournalVerse



Series: Regverse [3]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Gen, Major Character Injury, Major Original Character(s), Minor Character Death, Other, Pre-Undertale, Wartime
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-07
Updated: 2019-01-16
Packaged: 2019-08-20 02:29:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16547099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JournalVerse/pseuds/JournalVerse
Summary: We know that the monsters got trapped Underground.We know that the barrier is in place.What we don't know is how the bartender got wrapped up in all of it.





	1. Chapter 1

Well, I suppose since I have a moment, finally, I should write down what happened. Normally I don't keep a journal, but this seems important to record. If nothing else, I can give it to that librarian that managed to escape with all those books. Maybe they can add it to monster history or something.

 

Anyways. What happened was, there was a war.

 

-

 

It’s easiest to start off with what happened with Gautier. My brother had been away, closer to Paris than Annecy, off on training and routine military things that I would likely never understand. The monster armies were helping the human ones since the humans seemed to be fighting amongst themselves. Again, I really had no idea what was going on, I tended to simply leave them to their business. Père understood and he told me we should probably start being careful around our human customers and try not to bring up any politics at all for awhile. Gautier however was in the thick of it, and judging from his letters growing more and more bitter each time, it wasn’t looking good. I would later find out that the humans were in the midst of what they called World War I, and we monsters were lucky to not only be left out of most of it, but also miss most of it after being trapped underground.

 

We hadn’t expected to see Gautier for another few months, as that’s when his duties were meant to end, but he burst through the door while we were cleaning up between lunch and dinner service. At first I was delighted to see him, it had been nearly a year since the red fire had been in these walls. The delight faded quickly, however, and turned to concern. 

 

“Père! Where are you!” He looked around feverishly, his headflames sparking, startling the few customers who were sitting around. “Père!”   
  
“Gautier please, we have customers.” I moved to him and stopped him from barrelling into the kitchen, pushing him towards the back of the dining area instead. “What’s going on?” He was having none of my pleasantries or politeness, still craning his neck to see over my head.

 

“Grillbert we need to go, you need to close shop, where’s Sera?” He pushed past me, into the kitchen, still calling for our father. His tone alone unsettled me, Gautier was someone to move quietly, speak rarely, and never rush anyone or anything. To see him so… out of character was alarming.   
  
“Gautier what- son, what’s going on?” Père was behind the line, finishing up prep work for the dinner service. He wiped his hands off on his apron as Gautier moved to meet him, settling them on his son’s upper arms. “Why are you home early?” The pleased surprise from seeing his eldest son quickly devolved into tense worry, near panic, and I hovered in the doorway with my soul tight in the same emotions.

 

“Père I’m sorry I need you to close up shop, we need to go home and then get out of Annecy as quickly as possible. I’m sorry, I know it’s sudden, I’ll explain on the way home.” He shook his head and Sera joined me in the kitchen doorway, squinting in at the red flames that matched her own.   
  
“Gautier?” She moved to stand at the end of the line, tugging on his uniform sleeve. Gautier turned and smiled at her. Despite the tension and urgency, it was a true smile, one given to a younger sibling you truly adore.   
  
“Hello Sera.” Turning back to Père, his tone dropped once more and became terribly serious. “There has been an attack on the capitol. The humans tried to assassinate the King and Queen. They’re moving to spread their attacks across all of monster-occupied Europe. We have no idea where it came from, but the Royals have set up a safe area near Mt. Ebbot.”   
  
“Gautier Mt. Ebbot is eight hours away.” Père’s brow furrowed as Gautier shook his head and pulled away, pulling off his cap to shove a hand through his flames.   
  
“I know, I’m aware, that’s why we need to get going. Now. I don’t know how soon the forces are going to be here I just took the truck and sped as fast as I could. There’s room for all of us we just need to get going now.” 

 

“They’re trying to attack us? But we haven’t… done anything.” Sera pulled away from Gautier, he was the bearer of the news, so he remained the focus. She moved to my side and grabbed my sleeve, starting hard at our brother. Sera had a bad habit of killing the messenger. Mainly with a glare, but harsh words were not unheard of. “We try to coexist.”

 

“I know, Sera. They are just…” Gautier sighed and rubbed a hand through his flames again. “At the risk of sounding like an absolute asshole. They’re being bigoted and judgemental and not even letting anyone explain a thing. Just. Attacking. Just like they do to each other.” He was twisting his cap in his hands, staring at some spot on the floor. No wonder his letters had been bitter the past couple months. Père let out a soft huff at the comment, nodding.   
  
“Typical. Unfortunately.” He closed his eyes and sighed, moving his glasses to pinch the spot between his eyes. The very air of the kitchen was thick with impatience and worry as we all waited for our father’s decision. “Alright. Sera, go ring up all the checks, write up all the tabs. If we’re able to come back I'm still going to be paid what I’m owed.” Père’s gaze turned to me and he jerked his head to the dining room. “They all like you best, get out there and put that gentle voice of yours to use. Gautier, get in here and help me put all this food away. We’ll likely lose most of it anyways but we'll salvage what doesn't spoil.” 

 

He turned on his heel and Gautier followed him without a word, Sera released my arm and dashed to the register and tab book, leaving me to steel myself for a moment before turning back to the dining room and the curious customers who were trying to peer into the kitchen. I approached the first table with more seriousness and solemnity than normal, and they thankfully picked up on the vibe. If they couldn't hear my soul trying to pound through my shirt, at least they could see the tense nervousness in my flames. 

 

“I'm so sorry, there's been an emergency. We have to close up, I'll happily box your food for you.” This pattern continued for all eight tables and two bar patrons, and in a matter of fifteen minutes I had the place cleared out, Sera had the checks paid, and we moved to the kitchen to help finish up in there. Père was instructing our two non-family employees to head home, gather what they could and head out as we were. Since the word had come from an officer of the army, Corporal Gautier, no one questioned it. 

 

“Okay, Yves thank you. Should we wait for word from you to come back?” Père’s sous chef was asking, finishing shutting down the grill. 

 

“Yes, yes please do that. If something horrible happens I don’t want it to be because you tried to come to work. If you can get ahold of everyone else, please do. I’ll try as well.” Père’s voice was tired, strained with worry, and I saw him looking around the kitchen as if he were cataloging it, as if it were the last time he was going to see it. It was also obvious that he was trying to hide this from us, as he usually did when he was nervous. Unfortunately his flames betrayed his every emotion. 

 

“Père?” I moved to his side, reaching out a hand, aiming for his shoulder. He moved and turned towards me before I could reach him, giving a tight smile.

 

“I’m fine, son. Let’s just get everything cleaned up and get out of here. Your brother’s nerves are actually… well, nerves for once.” It was paired with a humorless laugh, and both hands running through his flames as he moved towards the dining room. I looked up and my eyes met Gautier’s, and we shared a silent message of  _ this is bad _ . Gautier knew that already, but seeing both my infallible older brother and my father who could handle anything nervous, it finally, truly hit me that we were in trouble. That something awful was about to happen.

 

With that knowledge, it didn’t take long for us to finish up and head home. 

 

-

 

“Grillbert! Get out of the house NOW!” My brother was shouting from the bottom of the stairs. I had just gathered my little sister in my arms. Ever since we had made it home, it had been a mad dash to try and grab what we could, but the humans had swooped down upon Annecy before we were able to pack more than our pockets. I ran down the stairs, clutching Sera tight to my chest. Her arms wrapped around my neck so tight I swore it felt like she was going to smother me.

 

“Grillbert!” Gautier’s voice was louder, more insistent, and I heard a crash outside, along with a few shouts of terror. Dear heavens above we really needed to move, everything Gautier had come to warn us about had followed him within hours. Who knew what could be behind it.

 

“I’m coming! I’ve got Sera!” My sister wrapped her arms tighter, and I took a long breath, heading into the living room where I knew my father was waiting. His flames flickered wildly above his head, and he was staring at the urn above the mantelpiece. I stopped in the doorway, clutching my sister tight. “Père?” He glanced my way before looking back to the mantel.

 

“Yes, I’m coming, let’s go.” He reached out and grabbed the urn, wrapping it in a scarf that was on the coat rack near the fireplace. “Let’s go. We can’t take anything else.” He pushed past my sister and I, moving to the front door, I stood for a moment before following. Gautier had already rushed ahead, making sure the path was clear. He peered back in the door and called back “I said let’s go!” before moving away.

 

“Wait! We’re coming!” I called after Père, adjusting my grip on Serafina. We made it outside and were met by what can only be called chaos. Literal, textbook chaos. Monsters ran everywhere, there was smoke in the air as the neighborhood was slowly consumed by the element my people were so very intertwined with, made of.  _ How poetic of the humans to use fire against us. How ironic. _

 

I fought back a scoff, watching my father move through the crowd, clutching the urn tight and following the flow of people, making it to Gautier’s side. Gautier took the urn and shoved it into his pack, strapping the bag tightly on his back. They both started moving towards the end of the street, towards where Gautier had been able to park the military truck he’d “borrowed.” I turned my head and looked down the street, grimacing at the flames consuming the houses just a few doors down. 

  
“Grillby… follow him… we can’t stay.” I turned once more as I heard Serafina’s soft voice and raised my eyebrows at her before the words registered.

 

“Yes of course.” I shook my head, the chaos already getting to me, and took off after my father. “Père!” He glanced over his shoulder, headflames trailing behind him. Gautier spared a glance as well before turning back and lifting a woman who’d tripped into his arms, carrying her towards a man who looked to be her husband.

 

“Don't dawdle!” Père snapped and I forced myself not to take it personally. We were in a rush. Being forced out of our home. Shouting at your son could be excused. His military instincts were snapping back into place. We were headed away from the mountains, following the flow of the crowd, right towards another mountain. Monsterkind was being forced out of the area, the humans had turned against us for a currently unknown reason. All we were focusing on at that moment was getting the hell out of there, out of Annecy. Out of France. It was utterly shocking to me that I was slipping into cold, simple logic rather than panic. Just replaying the facts over and over in my head. Somehow it helped.

 

I heard a scream of surprise and pain behind me, and Sera cringed into my shoulder, shaking her head. “Don't look back Grillby just don't look back… keep running.” She begged, twisting her fingers into my collar. I didn't want to think about the possibilities of what my sister could have just seen. “Please Grillby just keep running.” Her voice became a sob, and my soul cracked. Sera didn't get scared or upset easily. It must have been something truly horrible, and she still refuses to tell me what it was to this day.

 

“Grillbert! This way!” I looked up to see my brother waving at me furiously, and I headed towards him and Père. They were both staring at something behind me, and right before Gautier managed to say something, I heard what sounded like a gunshot.

 

Pain shot through my side, up into my chest,  _ what... on earth just hit me…? _

 

Through my confusion I didn’t notice when I stumbled, but then the world tilted and I fell. I somehow managed to roll onto my back so I wouldn't crush my sister. Her cry of alarm drowned out any other sound as I hit the ground, the air knocked out of me.  _ What the hell.  _ My eyes closed and I felt Sera scramble out of my arms, which dropped to the ground, spreading out on either side of me. 

 

_ Has Annecy always been this cold? _ All I could feel was the icy pain sinking into my side, chilling the entire left side of my body, creeping up my neck. 

 

The realization hit me as hard as I had hit the ground. Oh, heavens above, a mage spell, the humans had brought mages,  _ mages _ ! How ruthless could they be! I opened up my eyes and stared up at the sky, suddenly curiously mystified by the billowing smoke.  _ Why does it... look like birds instead of smoke… _ I mulled over this curious thought for a few moments, likely really only two seconds, before Sera was at my side, begging, screaming for me to get up, dragging me as best she could towards our family. I only vaguely registered this at first, too focused on my own delirious musings about smoke and it’s birdlike qualities. Then suddenly all I saw was yellow flame, flashing nearly white in nervousness, and I was lifted over my father’s shoulder.

 

“Stay with me, Grillbert… stay with me.” He was whispering but somehow it cut through the din. My own soul pulsed hard in my ears, and slowly, steadily, it drowned out the rest of the noise. I lifted my head enough to see Gautier’s dark red flame rush at the mage that had hit me and shove fire straight down his throat. I saw my brother’s mouth moving but I couldn’t hear what he was shouting. Judging from the expression and the dark, nearly black glow of his flames, it was probably something awful. The mage crumpled, and I felt a quiet, guilty, satisfaction that even if the ice got to my soul, he wouldn’t be able to hurt anyone else. Gautier quickly gathered me from Père as he caught up to us, slinging me over his shoulder just as Père had.

 

However, it still wasn't long before I passed out.

 

\---

 

Hitting the ground again jolted me out of my stupor. Color returned to the world as I opened my eyes slowly, Sera’s scream growing louder in my ears. I cringed at first, just wanting to return to sleep, just for five more minutes…

 

“Grillby!” That wasn't the tone she normally used to wake me up, why was she screaming? Why was I tasting dirt? Why was it so damn loud? “Gautier! Père! Please!”

 

Oh,  _ shit. _ That's right, I wasn't in bed.

 

“GRILLBY!” My sister was in trouble, I had to move, I had to get up, I had to protect her! I shoved myself up off the ground, squinting around in the ash and smoke, finally spotting her flickering red flame. My soul was still pounding a steady beat right into my ears, and I stood shakily, fingers balling into fists as I grit my teeth against the way my side screamed and protested. My own pain didn’t matter right now. I had to make sure Sera was safe. Where was Père? Or Gautier? Père had just been carrying me hadn’t he? Where had they gone… 

 

“Grillby please, please!” Her voice was high and strained, and I stumbled towards the flickering flame I could see through the ash. The difference in color and glow between man-made fire and elemental fire is blatant only to few.

 

“I'm coming! Hold on!” I called, not knowing how far my voice was carrying. My soul was still marking every pulse with a loud beat in my ears, the ice in my side screeching against every step. I stumbled over something, and nearly looked down to see what it was, but remembered I was in the middle of a battlefield and decided not to. Icy pain shot up my ribs and I wrapped a hand around them, ignoring my injury for the time being. My side protested louder and louder, but I grit my teeth harder and continued making my way to my sister. Thankfully her flame seemed to be staying in the same spot now, and I caught glimpses of something shining as she flickered. I couldn't tell what it was at this distance, just that it was metal.

 

_ “GRILLBY!” _ Her voice reached a new high note and I dropped my hand from my side and ran, all pain ignored.  _ I have to save my sister.  _ I heard running water, and my pulse quickened.  _ No no please no don't douse her no please. Where the hell is Père... _

 

She came in view before her captors did. She was on the ground, kneeling, arms being held behind her back. The human soldier behind her was laughing with the mage at his side, another soldier busy filling -  _ no _ . 

 

The glints of metal I'd been seeing were buckets.  _ Dear God no. Please. _

 

“Stop! Stop please just let her go please she's only thirteen  _ please. _ ” They looked up, and my eyes widened as I saw exactly who had captured my sister. “Sir  _ please. She's thirteen! _ ”

 

The mage looked up at me with a sneer. His companion laughed and shoved Sera to the ground face first. Her shout of pain was all the strength I needed to run the last few feet, tackling the soldier as best I could. He stumbled back a couple steps, but easily threw me off. I hit the ground for the third time that day, landing hard on my already injured side. Biting back a cry of pain, I forced myself to wheel around and shove off the ground, making to tackle the man once more. Again I was thrown, and the mage strode over to me, a smug grin on his face. I glared at him from the ground, panting hard against the pain.

 

“It doesn’t matter how old any of you are. Wildfires must be contained, like the vagabonds,

ne'er-do-wells, and insufferable bastards that you are.” He kicked me square in the chest, knocking me down, onto my back. That same boot remained on my chest, pressing me back into the dirt. I stared up at him, straining to move away, to get out from under his boot. He laughed. “Good luck, little Spitfire.” He spat at my face, the moisture hissing on my cheekbone, far too close to my eye for comfort. I hastily swiped it away, before it could put any of my flames out. Where the hell were Père and Gautier! They couldn’t be far! How had they not heard!

 

“Spitfire.” I growled, my headflames beginning to spark as I took ahold of his ankle, focusing to force the flames on my hand to spark until finally his pants caught and he yelped, jumping away. I stood shakily, swiping at my cheekbone once more and letting the flames on my shoulders and neck rise high, staring the mage and the soldiers down. The mage glared at me, he’d managed to get his foot in one of the buckets before his leg was burnt, but since I’d fought back, now it was personal. Now I could see the evil gleam of intent in his eyes. He wouldn’t just douse me, not easily. Not anymore. Now it was a  _ fight _ .   
  
“Yes.  _ Spitfire _ . That is in fact the little insult you wildfires throw at each other, isn’t it?” He lifted the bucket and heaved its contents at me, and I leapt to the side to avoid it. It was a messy throw, his anger and annoyance making him lose control. My side screamed at the movement, and I forced myself not to grab it, not to reveal that weakness. One of the soldiers reached down to lift Sera by the back of her dress, and I growled, low and angry.

 

“Put. Her. Down.” My hands balled back into fists and I took a few steps, narrowing my eyes. I could feel flames spreading down my back, threatening to catch my shirt alight. Even still the ice in my side fought against it, but I forced the pain away, focusing on making the flame hotter, higher. The soldier laughed.

 

“Make me, Spitfire.” He shook Sera, dangling her above the ground. She let out a sob, twisting to pull at her dress, trying to free herself from his grasp. Her best bet would have been to burn a hole in her dress or burn his hand, but it was unlikely she’d thought past her fear.

 

“You haven’t seen the best of me yet.” The words were little more than a grumble, and I took the last steps, grabbing his arm and amping my heat like before. Lucky for me, he wasn’t wearing the same type of armor I’d seen on guards before. Not on this one, just a normal cloth uniform. Perfect for burning. He tried to pull away, but I held tight, glaring at him as my other hand shot out behind me to stave off the mage whom I could hear trying to get behind me. I gathered fire in that palm, building it into a ball. I could feel my form slipping as I used my magic, my jawline was surely a blur by then. The guard’s sleeve finally caught after a few long, horribly long seconds, and he dropped Sera to wave his arm, which only fanned the flames and made them shoot up above his elbow. I dropped to catch my sister before she hit the ground, cradling her to my chest as she sobbed.

 

“I’ve got you.” I whispered, glancing between her captors and then taking off, heading back towards the crowd, back towards the last place we’d seen Père. Where the hell did he run off to?

 

“Come back here, Spitfire!” I heard the Mage shout, but I just kept running. Sera clung to me, sobbing, and I grit my teeth against the sound. Then I stumbled, and she fell out of my arms. The mage had frozen one of my feet to the ground, and the ice was slowly creeping up my leg. My soul was loud against my ears, the only sound I could hear for a few moments. The injury and using my magic was already starting to make me dizzy, and hitting the ground again certainly did not help in the slightest.  _ Not again. Don’t pass out, don’t pass out, it’s okay, it’ll be fine. You’ll be fine. _

 

“Grillby NO! GET UP!” Sera screamed, pulling on my arm as I kicked at the ice with my free foot, trying to break it. It wasn’t even cracking. Magic ice was stronger than normal ice, and the pain in my side reminded me of that. “Grillby please!!” Sera’s voice was a sob and I tugged her down, placing a hand on her face, forcing her to listen.

 

“Listen! Go find Père! He’ll keep you safe! Go!” I tried to push her away, tried to get her to go. She wouldn’t, she just held on.   
  
“Grillby no please just get up!” She begged, yanking on my arm hard. I grunted at the tug, it pulled the injury along my side. There was a flash of red and we both looked up, Gautier had made it to us.  _ Oh, thank the heavens, thank you… _ I let out a sigh of relief and heard Sera cry out to him, ducking near me as Gautier commanded a wall of flame to rise and rush at the human trio.

 

“Go find Père! Now! Get to the truck!” His voice barely carried over the roar of his own flames, and he turned back as a crack of thunder sounded. The mage had summoned a stormcloud, dousing the fire Gautier had summoned. 

 

“Oh, a little red spitfire here to try and warm us up. Is that the best firewall you’ve got?” The mage laughed, waving away his stormcloud, obviously feeling as if he had the situation under control. Gautier grinned, but it wasn’t friendly. That saying of ‘never trust a smiling dog’ sometimes counts for fire elementals too.

 

“Oh no, no. How about one to rival Gehenna?” 

 

Gehenna. From ages ago, wars past, the great wall of fire that stretched miles along the countryside, effectively breaking off the human armies for months. There had been only one elemental powerful enough to raise it, strong enough to keep it burning. It hadn’t happened since, but the brief look of panic in the mage’s eyes at the mention of it was enough to make Gautier’s grin grow wider.

 

He raised both arms to lift an even hotter, brighter wall of fire, burning near white, pink-tinged from his red base. It stretched along the street until either side touched a building, reaching high into the clouds and smoke. It had to have been  _ at least _ twelve feet tall. I had never seen anything higher in my life, even during the midsummer gatherings. Those were generally four to six elementals controlling borders of multi-colored flame around the local park. This was  _ one _ . My brother was strong, of course, but obviously far stronger than I’d ever known.

 

The heat from his flames warped the air badly enough to make everything look as if it were swaying slightly and the guards stepped back, even as the mage continued to stare Gautier down. My brother held his arms out to his sides, his focus hard and steady as he stepped forward to push the wall towards the humans. One soldier got caught in it, quickly lighting his uniform as he screeched and dove for the ground, flailing and trying to put it out. The mage lifted a single hand, light flashing around him as a sort of shield manifested around him. Gautier threw out a hand, forcing that side of the wall closer to the other soldier, who leapt back to avoid the same fate as his partner who was slowly being consumed by dark red flame. In the split second Gautier’s focus was away from the mage, he casted another spell.

 

Gautier was encased in ice up to his chest, frozen in place. I had never once seen pure shock on his face until then. He shot a glare so hot at the mage I was sure he was going to alight with just that look. 

 

“Gautier!” Sera was shouting again, lifting from the ground to try and run to our brother who was forcing his fire hotter, brighter than I’d ever seen it, trying to melt the ice. He looked over his shoulder at Sera and his eyes widened.

 

“No! Sera! Get Grillby and leave! Go! I’ll find you!” He shouted back, grunting when the mage closed his fist and the ice shot up around his shoulders.   
  
“Gautier no! We’ll help you!” Sera was sobbing, scrambling to get closer, but I lunged forward as best I could to grab her leg and yank her down. I missed. The mage stepped closer to Gautier, the ice creeping up around my brother’s throat. 

 

“Sera, if you love me let me go, now! Get away from here!” He shouted, hard and angry, and she froze. We never raised our voices to our sister, ever. Not in anger. “Go now! I’ll find you later! Go!” She shook her head and Gautier growled in frustration. “Serafina! Melt the ice on Grillby and get your ass out of here now!” At the sound of anger in his voice she yelped and turned back, pressing her hands to the ice around my foot and amplifying her own heat to try and help. I stared at the mage’s face as he grinned up at Gautier, my brother a good foot taller than the human. 

 

“Now, now, Corporal. Dying on the battlefield is a much more honorable way to go out than of old age, isn’t it? Protecting your family even.” He was far too pleased about the situation, and it made my jaw clench tightly, my headflames shoot up and spark.

 

“Sera, hotter.” She nodded and I resumed kicking at the ice, heating my leg as best I could. The ice wasn’t doing much in the way of melting, and I looked up to see the other soldier hovering over me, his smug grin back on his face. I glared up at him and moved to shield Sera, what little I could.   
  
“Come now, Spitfire. Stop struggling and it’ll be over for you much more quickly. And a lot less painfully.”

 

“I won’t give up without a fight!” I stopped struggling against the ice around my foot for a moment, gathering fire in both my palms, managing to prop myself up on my knees as the soldier drew a gun from underneath his coat. I threw out a hand, fire arcing from it and going right for the gun and its small amount of gunpowder. The weapon exploded and I looked away to avoid seeing the damage I’d done, but I heard his cry and the thunk as he hit the ground.

 

“You little asshole!” The mage shouted, and as if he teleported, suddenly he was near us, kicking at my injured side. Sera scrambled away as I winced, leaning heavily into that side and sucking in a sharp breath. I clenched my jaw against the pain, turning my hand back over to pull more flames into it. I felt my solid form slip more, this was far more magic than I had  _ ever _ used in a single day, and I shuddered as I felt my shirt catch fire. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too badly burnt. I threw both hands out in front of me, ignoring the knifelike pain slicing through my side and shoulders as the mage threw more ice at me. I managed to melt most of the ice he threw but the cold mist that showered me afterwards felt like a hundred pins being driven into my palms. With a shout of frustration, fear, and downright  _ anger _ , I gave up and let my solid form go, clothes dropping to the ground and catching alight as I slid out of them, an inferno of pure flame.

 

I lunged at him, surrounding him with fire, turning up the heat as hot as I could manage. I’d fallen apart, just like I was afraid of doing, but this man had hurt my sister and tried to kill me and my brother. He needed to burn, he needed to feel every ounce of pain I did, everything Sera did, everything Gautier did. Such a hateful, horrible creature didn’t deserve anything less. I had to ignore his screams as my fire spun around him, burning him,  _ consuming  _ him. 

 

The moment my soul skipped a beat, I stopped, sliding back into my clothes as best I could. Fortunately, turning into an inferno had melted all the magic ice that had burrowed deep into my core, but it didn’t remove the pain. Every spot where I’d been touched by both of the mages’ ice was screaming, ghostly cold burrowing into my body as I lay there, listening to clothes and bones crackle. I stared off, the world turning dark at the edges as the magma that composed my core leaked onto my shirt and then the ground beneath me.

 

The last thing I remember is Sera forcing herself into a white-hot flame to melt the ice around Gautier as he did the same, two bright beacons burning in the smoke and ash.


	2. Chapter 2

After… awhile. However long it was that I was asleep. I became aware of a soft, rhythmic murmuring. A soft, slow click-click-click, like wood against wood. It was familiar, and it took me a good two or three minutes to place it. _A rosary. Père’s rosary. No wonder that sounds so familiar._ Listening for a moment, I heard the remembered, quiet words of the Hail Mary prayer, spoken in my father’s quiet, somber tone. I had always thought it sounded prettier in French than Common, but French was also the first language I’d heard it in.

I squeezed my eyes shut tightly for a brief moment and then opened them, seeing nothing but bright spots of red and yellow. I lifted a hand to rub against my eyes and face, and the red blur shifted, the yellow one lifting its head.

“Grillb! Oh Grillb! You made it Grillby oh gosh I was so worried!” Sera suddenly collapsed on me, and I swallowed back a grunt of pain, instead wrapping my arms around her and looking up at the yellow blur above me. I’d lost my glasses somewhere, likely when I had lost my form. I closed my eyes, shuddering against the memory. That wasn’t something I ever wanted to do again.

“Grillby… I thought I’d lost you.” My father’s voice was cracked with hardly restrained sobs, and I looked up at him as best I could, Sera’s headflames flickering in my face. “I thought… I thought I’d lost my son…” He put his face in his hands and collapsed against the side of what I could now see was a makeshift hospital bed. Beyond yellow and red blurs there were more multicolored blurs, other monsters, I assumed.

“What happened?” I asked, surprised at how crackly and scratchy my voice was. Apparently it hadn’t been too long since I’d gone inferno. Sera pulled back and looked down at me sadly.

“We’re… under the mountain. We got driven here by the humans… they… turned on us…” She spoke slowly, softly, her gaze turning downwards. I sighed and stared up, noting that there wasn’t sky above us, only dark rock. Père sat up out of the corner of my vision, and I heard his slow sigh as he steadied himself.

“They ambushed the Capitol. We’re lucky as many of us made it out as we did.” My father’s voice was a forced calm, and I turned my gaze to him fully. He was staring stonily off into the distance, hands twined tightly together. “But you know all that. After you passed out, we carried you to the other military vehicles that had shown up and we all got driven to Austria with the humans on our tails. We made it to the Capitol, but then the ambush came and we all got driven further back, and eventually into the mountain. And now. We’re here.” His gaze rested on his hands, squeezing one of the beads on his rosary between his thumb and index finger.

“I... “ I gulped. “I killed two of them. Two humans, Père. I… I killed them.”

“I know.” His voice was quiet and he didn’t look up. Sera turned away, hiding in her arms against my chest.

“I’m sorry.” I whispered. The reality of what I had actually done, the fact I had taken two lives, was setting in and oh I did not like it. I wanted to take it back. I wanted to take it back.

“I’m not upset. You were protecting your sister.”

“I…” I swallowed hard, gritting my teeth, sitting up, and wrapping my arms tightly around Sera, pressing my face into the top of her head with a shiver.

“You were protecting your sister.” He said it more forcefully this time. Normally that tone would have made anyone just stop and accept whatever he said but...

“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…” I whispered, shaking as a sob tore out of my chest, tears hissing under my eyes. My father laid a hand on my leg where he could reach, closing his eyes as I cried into Sera’s flames. I was hurting practically everywhere and angry and still unstable from losing my form. What else could I do.

My soul pounded hard in my ears as I gripped Sera tightly, it drowned out everything else. After a moment, I lifted my head and squinted with blurry eyes around the bed, as far as I could see.

“Wh-where’s… Gautier?”

Sera gripped me harder as Père’s face fell, his gaze dropping to the rosary in his hands. As I looked I saw a scrap of fabric under the beads, against his palm. Dark blue and red, and if I squinted just right, I could see the number 27 embroidered on it. _No… no that’s… that’s from… no. Oh no._

My head dropped back to Sera’s shoulder and she pressed her hand to my flames as I released a shuddering sigh. Her voice was hardly a breath as she whispered, as if she didn’t even want Père to hear. “He might just… be missing. We don’t.” She coughed out a sob and her arms tightened around me. “We don’t know.”

“We don’t know. We got. Separated from him in the Capitol.” Père’s voice was nearly as soft, and I glanced up to see him rubbing the scrap of uniform collar between his fingers. “This might not even be his. One of our customers found it and brought it to me, with. With the hopes.” He sighed, unable to finish his sentence, unable to put those words in the air, moving his rosary and the scrap to one hand and pressing the other over his face. Sera pulled back, leaning to grab her little bag off the end of the bed and digging something out.

“We found your glasses, Grillby.” She reached out and settled them on my face, smiling gently and brushing her hand across my flames. I offered a weak one back, leaning back into the pillow. The change in subject was sudden but not unwelcome, and I watched Père bend to rest his elbows on the edge of the bed, lifting his hands together and closing his eyes. The chaplain didn’t know what to do other than pray, it seemed.

Sera moved to lay against my uninjured side, and I settled my arm around her with a soft sigh. My head leaned against hers, letting my eyes close, letting her share her warmth. She had more of it than I did at the time. The world was chaotic and dangerous and terrifying, but in that one single moment, there was little I was more grateful for than Sera’s headflames brushing gently against my jaw to lull me back to sleep.

\-------

When I next woke up, I was alone in my little corner of the makeshift infirmary. My glasses had been removed, but I could see the blurry shape of them next to whatever it was I was using for a pillow. I put my arms over my face and just laid there for awhile, thinking through what Pere had said about Gautier and what I’d done. It wasn’t long before I felt a gentle pressure on my arm. Moving one to peer under it, I saw a cat monster hovering above me, a nurse badge pinned to her shirt. She grinned softly. She looked so worn out, and even without my glasses I could see the dust and stains on her clothes. The poor woman. I couldn’t imagine the horrors she’d gone through just in the past couple of days.

“Another face I’m glad to see alert.” She grinned wider, then gently moved both my arms away from my face, inspecting the small injuries along them, the ones that wouldn’t scar.

“Oh, are you the one who bandaged me?” I asked. Sera had told me before I passed out that the nurse had bandaged a tincture right next to the wound to help lessen the scarring and keep the pain down as well. Thus far, it had worked. The pain was a dull, throbbing ache at the moment instead of the stabbing pain it had been before.

“I was indeed!” She nodded, motioning for me to sit up. I did, and she lifted my shirt to look at the bandage underneath, pressing her fingers gently into the injury. I winced, and she pulled back. “Alright, it still hurts. But you’re awake and talking, which is fantastic. I noticed you had some visitors earlier too, I’m glad you’re feeling up to guests. Even if they’re just family!”

“Me too.” I smiled softly, tugging my shirt back down and dropping my hands in my lap. “Are there… many injured?” I asked, looking down at my hands. The state of her clothes was really enough to say, but it was even worse to think of where the dust came from. She sighed very quietly.

“Yes. Almost too many. We got… laid waste to.” She swallowed hard, running her hands over her ears, then she straightened, smiling softly once more. “But we have to focus on the ones that got saved, and save the ones that need help.”

“... Yeah… that's a good idea.” I nodded, looking down to my hands and stretching my fingers out to look at my palms, my forearms. Thin hard lines of cooled magma crossed them, from fighting with the Mage. They'd flake off eventually, but for now I was stuck with them. Stuck with physical evidence of this memory. But the nurse was right, I should focus on the fact I saved my sister. The fact that I was still alive. “Do you think I'm well enough to walk around a bit?” I looked back up at her as I asked, and she grinned and nodded.

“Just walking, no running. And not very far.” She nodded once more and her tail swished, pleased. I grinned back, sucking in a breath before swinging my legs over the side of the bed, staying sitting for a moment before shoving myself up. I only wavered slightly, and the nurse held her hands on either side of me just in case, but I managed to stay upright just fine. “Oh, wonderful!” She clapped her hands together, huffing happily. “Oh I'm so glad!”

“Me too, me too.” I grinned at her, looking around and spotting my father’s sweater at the end of the bed. “Thank you for all your help, Ms…?”

“Halix.” Her relief and pleasure at having a healed patient was infectious, and I couldn’t help but grin wider.

“Mrs. Halix, then. Thank you.”

She waved a paw, laughing lightly. “Just doing my job. You’re welcome. Remember.” Her face grew a bit more serious, more motherly, and she pointed a claw at me. “Not too far, and no running.”

“Yes ma’am.” I nodded, and she grinned one last time before moving away to check on her next patient. With only a little bit of difficulty and stiffness, I managed to pull on dad’s sweater, thankful for the extra bit of heat it provided. Time to see if there’s any food anywhere, I suppose. I rubbed a hand over the back of my head, scratching into my headflames and setting off. At the very least, I could find Sera and Pere.

After wandering a while, speaking to a few others from my neighborhood that had made it, I discovered that we were indeed under the mountain, and we were now sealed off from the outside world by a huge magical barrier.

The one that described it to me actually turned out to be one of the people I had feared for most. She had been our neighbor my whole life, and was not only my best friend but Sera’s as well. She’d been the one Sera was preparing to leave the diner to see, and on any other normal day I would have joined them once my shift was over as well.

“Brelle! Oh, Brelle! Brelle Yoann!” My voice wasn’t as strong as it used to be, and I couldn’t rush after the glowing pink light as quickly as I wanted to, but thankfully she heard me. It was an absolute, world-normalizing joy to see her flames flicker up as she turned, then rushed to me and threw her arms around my shoulders.

“Oh! Grillbert! My dearest Grillbert oh I was so worried about you.” She expertly avoided touching or leaning against my side, Sera must have warned her before she found me. “Sera and Yves found me before they went to do what they do best, you know, feeding every person in the entire cavern. They told me what you did, how you saved Sera, and you getting hurt. Oh I was so worried, Grillbert! I can’t imagine what you’ve been through! I can’t believe what’s happened to yo-” Her voice was getting steadily more breathy as she spoke and I pulled back with a soft smirk and tapped her bottom lip.

“Breathe, diva.” Brelle’s most terrible habit was to talk and talk, and forget to take a breath. She blinked and then huffed, leaning her head against my shoulder and squeezing me tighter, just for a moment.

“Yes, yes of course, I’m breathing.” She then lifted her head and rubbed her eyes on her sleeve, huffing again with a quick, decisive snap of her flames. “Do you know what happened, then, my dearest?”

“Besides being driven underground, no. I fell back asleep before Pere and Sera could tell me more.” I tugged Brelle gently towards the side of the cave we were in, out of the way of people moving around. “What happened to you and your family? I didn’t see you when we were leaving.”

“I saw you, I saw Gautier throw up that giant wall of flame. He was so-” She stopped once she saw my face tighten at the mention of my still-missing brother, and looked down the cavern. Her ability to read me as easily as she read lines was something I’d forever be thankful for. “My family, unfortunately, were all out of the neighborhood when the attack happened. I haven’t seen them yet. I’m… not sure if I will.” Brelle’s eyes squeezed shut and I felt her using every ounce of her willpower to stay in control of her emotions. I lifted my arms to wrap around her, ignoring the pull against my side to do so.

“Shh, it’s alright. We’ve… all lost pretty much everything at this point.” Brelle buried her face against my neck and hid there for a minute, and didn’t seem to want to speak, so I just tilted my head against hers and let my own eyes close as we just stood there. We’d been friends for long enough that things like this weren’t unusual, Brelle had fallen asleep against my side on many a train ride and during many late night line-reading sessions. It took a little while, and me finally rubbing her headflames, but Brelle calmed enough to pull back, rubbing her eyes on her sleeve once more.

“Alright, anyways. I’m supposed to be telling you what happened.” She pulled away, lowering her arms and crossing them, her chin tilting up. It was much more like her normal self, such a switch from earlier, that I grinned at the sight. “So. They drove us into this stinky, wet cavern that is so, so bad for fire monsters, so bad for my headflames, do you see how they’re drooping?” Her hand waved over her flames and I suppressed a smirk. “They drove us in here and trapped us.” At this she pointed behind me, to a large, glowing, square barrier of magic that vaguely resembled a door. It was further down the cavern, away from most of the congregation of monsters. “I got told that this huge white wall-looking thing-” She flipped her hand “-is a barrier, made of magic by the human mages. It’s impenetrable, even our best scholars haven’t been able to figure out how to break it. And I’m not sure they want to right now. There’s still a war going on, there’s still fighting. It’s a mess. And I don’t blame them if they want to wait awhile before trying to break it down.”

I nodded at this, looking back at the barrier, watching it pulse. The magic was so strong, it infused the air of the entire area. One could feel it seeping slowly into their core, or whatever your center was, for whatever monster you were. I must’ve not been paying enough attention to her to satisfy the diva, because Brelle patted my chest and was frowning at me when I turned my gaze back on her.

“Grillbert, dearest. I’m telling you a story. Don’t stare off into space and dream about leading men.” Her tone was nonchalant and teasing but the comment still made me flush a soft blue. Upon seeing the color, she grinned then launched back into her tale. “Anyways, I believe they’re purposely waiting for a few days before even attempting anything. It seems like we can touch it and be fine, but there’s something keeping us from going through. They asked a lot of different monsters to try, especially us elementals. And I know first hand because I volunteered to test for fire.” If Brelle were a human, her hair toss would have looked normal, but the toss of her head and little swish of her flames looked more amusing than haughty.

“Ah, of course, the leading lady raised her hand first?” She stuck her tongue out at me but nodded, leaning forward to plant her chin on my shoulder and stare off towards the barrier. I busied myself with straightening the bow of her sash against the small of her back.

“It felt like… touching someone’s core. But a really big someone. Really powerful, and not very warm. It felt like what I imagine an ice elemental’s core to feel like. Solid, strong, frozen.” Brelle sighed quietly, tucking her face against my shoulder. Bowing my head, I rested it gently against hers and squeezed her softly.

“I hope you never have to touch the real thing.”

“As do I, mon cherie.” Another sigh and she pulled back, her haughty expression back. To anyone else it would have been realistic, but I saw the lower, shaky flames instead of the high and flickering ones to match. “Alright, I am going to go back to the infirmary. I offered to help out with the little bit of healing magic I know, so I am going to do that. Make myself feel useful.”

“That sounds lovely. Very giving of you.” She slapped my chest on the side that wasn’t hurt, and I laughed. “That wasn’t sarcasm, I promise.”

“Hmph. Well I was going to offer to heal you but you’re well enough to make jokes and be a brat, so you obviously don’t need it.” She tried to pull away but I tightened my grip and she grinned. Leaning in, she stood on her toes to kiss my forehead then actually pulled away. “I am going. I love you, be safe. Go find your family.”

“Yes, as my diva commands.” With a gentle squeeze to her upper arms I released her, and she pointed her finger in my face.

“Yes, she does.” With a wave of her hand that turned into a blown kiss, Brelle swept away, her head still held high and her flames trailing after her. “If anything in this world changes it will be due to Brelle.” I whispered, rubbing a hand in my flames. It was a moment later when I felt another monster nearby, then heard a soft noise afterwards.

“Ex… excuse me?”

 

_Story continues with Scars of War Chapter 3._


End file.
